Community Columnists

YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS | Should you get an attorney for your workers compensation claim?

By David Betras
Attorney David Betras
Attorney David Betras

[Editor’s note: This one’s from the mailbag — a question for attorney David Betras submitted by a reader. Though Betras’ firm does not practice this type law, he offers his advice below. If you have a legal question, send it to news@mahoningmatters.com.]

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“I have a workers compensation claim with an independent medical exam and a hearing scheduled for next week. Do I need an attorney?”

The answer is absolutely, positively, unequivocally “Yes” for many, many, many reasons.

Reason No. 1: In Ohio, workers compensation is, with very few exceptions, the sole source of monetary benefits for people who suffer job-related injuries or illnesses. If your claim is approved, you may be eligible for these and other benefits:

  • Medical benefits;

  • Temporary total disability;

  • Permanent partial disability;

  • Permanent total disability;

  • Wage loss compensation;

  • Death benefits paid to the spouse and dependents of a worker killed on the job.

If your claim is denied, you will receive zip, zero, zilch, nada.

Reason No. 2: The system is incredibly complicated. The laws governing workers comp occupy thousands of pages of the Ohio Revised Code and are merely the tip of the legal and bureaucratic iceberg. There are tens of thousands of pages more of precedents and rules I cannot comprehend, and I have been practicing law for decades.

People spend their whole lives attempting to master this stuff, so I doubt you are going to gain the expertise you need to represent yourself at your hearing between now and next week.

Reason No. 3: The deck is stacked against you and other injured workers. Along with the sheer complexity of the law, workers who attempt to pursue claims on their own face what can appear to be insurmountable roadblocks to success.

Many if not most employers contest every claim, which automatically triggers the hearing process. The Bureau of Workers Compensation may deny your claim. The doctor who examines you may determine your injury or illness is not work-related. There are strict filing deadlines for both original claims and appeals — miss them and you are done.

I could go on, but I think you get the message.

Reason No. 4: You will be the only non-lawyer in the room. The person who conducts the hearing on behalf of the Industrial Commission — the body that adjudicates claims — will be a lawyer. Your employer will be represented by a lawyer who specializes in this area of the law. You will, in essence, be showing up for a gunfight completely unarmed.

Reason No. 5: Being represented by an experienced attorney exponentially increases the chance that your claim will be approved. In addition, a lawyer will ensure that you receive all the benefits you need and deserve and protect your ability to file for additional compensation should your injury or illness persist or grow worse in the years ahead.

Reason No. 6: Most workers comp attorneys work on a contingency fee basis which means you can afford to hire an attorney who will go toe-to-toe with the bureau, the commission and your employer.

My advice: call one today.

— Attorney David Betras, a senior partner at Betras, Kopp & Markota LLC., directs the firm’s non-litigation activities and practices criminal defense law in both the state and federal courts. He has practiced law for 35 years. Have a legal question you’d like answered here? Send it to news@mahoningmatters.com.